Wheat falls as markets monitor Black Sea export prospects
WEAT•Chicago wheat fell 0.32% to $7.01 a bushel as traders assessed whether diplomacy could ease disruption to Black Sea grain exports. Corn fell 0.4%, while soybeans were nearly unchanged.
1. Grain prices slip
The most-traded Chicago wheat contract was down 0.32% at $7.01 a bushel by 0140 GMT. Corn fell 0.4% to $5.26-1/4 a bushel, while soybeans were flat at $13.19-1/4.
2. Black Sea talks
Traders weighed whether diplomatic efforts could ease disruption to exports from Russia and Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said India, Turkey, Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries were taking part in talks on unblocking Black Sea shipping. Turkey had submitted shipping-security proposals to Moscow, but no substantive negotiations were underway.
3. Supply disruptions persist
Traders hope a truce could revive cargo movements, which were near a standstill in the region. Russia could quickly restart up to 80% of its Black Sea grain terminal capacity if a ceasefire followed diplomatic efforts, while Ukraine held 24.6 million metric tons of grain stocks as of September 1, 10 million tons more than a year earlier. Continued attacks on ports and vessels tempered hopes for a recovery in shipments; importers sought alternative supplies, including a French shipment of about 60,000 tons of wheat to Yemen.
